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Brian Neal
Sat, 17 May 2014 00:20:46 GMT

Brian Neal
Sun, 29 Jun 2014 19:01:08 GMT

Most of the time – I do not like to get involved with and/or state my opinion on news stories, especially when they involve a person(s) talking about someone’s Christianity and/or their lack of belief in God. God has led me to write and share the following words: “Over the last few days, I have seen a lot of stories and comments on Facebook and in the media about Tim Lambesis - the former lead singer of the band “As I Lay Dying”. For the ones of you that are not familiar with him - on May 7th, 2013, Tim was arrested in Oceanside, CA for allegedly hiring an undercover detective to kill his estranged wife and he plead not guilty to the charge. On February 25th, 2014 he changed his plea to guilty and on May 16th, 2014 - Tim Lambesis was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison. I have read the interviews that he did around the time of his conviction and supposedly right afterwards. It is very obvious that he is and was a very miserable, misled and hurting man to have hired a hit man to kill his wife and to do the other things that he has done involving his family, fr iends and band. He has lashed out with words and threw everyone that was in his band under the proverbial bus. The old saying ‘Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me’ is one of the biggest lies ever spoken and/or written. Hateful and untruthful words can sometimes do just as much damage as a gun can in the hands of a killer. Tim has done his best to blame everyone else for his personal choices and mistakes. His words have and they will in the future - punish and place public scrutiny and conviction upon his ex-band mates and it’s a crying shame. “As I Lay Dying” for many years has been termed as a “Christian” band. Over the years and on numerous occasions, the members of this band have stated that they are practicing Christians, but have been labeled by the majority of the media as part of the “Metalcore” genre, not Christian metal. Over the years, they have toured with Christian bands and secular bands alike. The last few years have found them touring with more secular Metalcore bands than Christian bands. Not too long ago, Tim made a public comment that was very un-called for – he stated that nine out of ten of the “Christian” bands that they would tour with were not actually Christians. Now every “Christian” band that “As I Lay Dying” has ever toured with in the past will have a bulls eye painted on them. Please understand this – Tim’s comments about these bands and his band members come from a place of pain and they are not necessarily based upon truth. He stated publically in interviews that he is now an atheist and he then went on to state that the other members of “As I Lay Dying” are atheists as well. The comment about the rest of the guys in the band has been called slanderous and defamatory by another band member. Please remember this - everything that Tim has stated is from his point of view, personal opinion and portrayed through his eyes. Unfortunately at this time his eyes seem to be very, very clouded. I have found over the years that hurting people tend to hurt others sometimes with their words, actions and choices. I have already seen comments on Facebook and on other websites where people are crucifying and putting down on “Christian” bands and talking about how this just makes them not want to listen to and/or trust these type bands or musicians anymore. Tim and others have clearly judged a lot of people via his words and God made it very clear to us in His Word that we are not to judge others. God is the only Judge. Luke 6:37 is very clear on God’s viewpoint on this topic and as followers of Christ we should be doing the same and following God’s precepts. What Tim has done is definitely wrong, but as followers of Jesus Christ we should be praying for him and offering forgiveness - not condemnation. We are to hate the sin, but love the sinner. Every person on earth is capable of making bad choices when standing in the face of heavy circumstances. Everyone deals with things in different ways. Some folks can handle more or less than others, but WE all have a breaking point. Throw other substances like drugs into the mix and it is possible that you will do things that you never even dreamed of doing. I personally know about that well from my pre-Christ days. I personally believe in second, third, fourth and even a thousand chances if people will accept them and God does too. God has given each one of us countless chances through His love and grace, and most of all through His Son. We are all sinners saved by grace. (Ephesians 2) One of the most quoted Bible verses of all time states this: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23. It said “ALL”, not just Tim and folks that have been convicted of terrible crimes. All includes you and me. Do we not believe Romans 3:23 or is it just a “Christian” cliché? A lot of folks always stop at that verse and never read or quote the rest of the passage associated with it. Verse 23 is the bad news because it convicts all of us. Verses 24 and beyond go on to state that we are justified by His grace and that redemption is found in and through Jesus Christ. This is Good News for each one of us and for Tim Lambesis as well. There is hope for all of us as long as we are still breathing and are willing to lay our sins and life at Jesus’ feet. If Tim Lambesis has truly turned away from God and has become an atheist as his interviews have stated – he can change his mind and I promise you that God will accept him with open arms just like the Father did for the prodigal son. God will run to him if he decides to make the choice to choose Christ. He did it for me and I know without a doubt that he will do it for him. God loves us all more than we can fathom. Will you join me in praying for Tim Lambesis? Pray that God will reveal Himself to Tim clearly during his stay in prison. Pray that God will bring some good out of this horrible situation. I’ve done a lot of prison ministry in the past and I’ve seen first-hand the Light burst forth in that very dark place. Pray for Tim’s ex-wife and three children and that they will be taken care of and encouraged in the coming days, weeks, months and years. Pray for the ex-members of “As I Lay Dying” as they move on with their personal lives and their new musical endeavors. Pray that the truth will be revealed by them and to them now and in the future. I pray John 8:32 over all of them now. Pray for all of the Christian bands and musicians that are out there truly spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ through their music and words. Thanks for reading this and a big thank you to every one of you that is now praying for this young man.” God bless you and your families.